The Black Fog

The Pyramids And The Curse

The photo is Ilsa...

We got to Egypt via a stomach-churning roller coaster type vehicle that traveled through an underground maze. When we arrived, we were tossed out, and fell into scalding hot sand. If the sand was hot, it was barely hotter than the air. I was wearing a long sleeved white cotton top and white crop top underneath, with a long white skirt, and sandals. The reason most of my body was cover was because Clio warned me that it's better to wear thin clothes that cover your body so you don't get burnt. We were covered in sunblock too.

"Does your genius self know where the tomb is?" I asked Nolan.
"If my genius self is correct, it is in that general direction" He pointed west.
"Ummm... Does your genius self ever watch Ancient Egyptian Documentaries? They are way better now days because you can explore the actual location without being there" I reply. He taps his chin.
"It is in that direction though?" He asks me. I raised an eyebrow and shook my head.
"Tutankhamun was buried in the East of the valley of the king's, fool" I said walking to the East. I saw the others exchanged curious looks, shrug, and then follow me. We reached the Pyramid at the hottest time of day. Ugh... Hot, burning, Sun, dying... Anyway, we got through the barriers easy enough, the fog had passed, and there were no humans to stop us. Only scorpions; possibly worse, I know. Once we were in the tomb, it was a bit cooler. There was a horrible eerie feeling about the tomb, and I ain't talking about the eerie feeling in the Egyptian area of Universal Studios Singapore. It was really scary, like the statues were about to come alive and eat us for breakfast.
"Ummm... Lil, hasn't this place been escalated?" Asked Will. I was to entranced by the paintings that covered the walls.
"Yes. But they didn't take everything. If they did, they all would have died. READ YOUR HISTORY" I snapped.
"Okay, okay, okay. Isn't this place like, three thousand three hundred and something years old? So how does Clio know that the rock is still here?" Will says. I groan.
"We don't. And it's not a rock, it is a jewel a big white-" I started.
"Ghost!" Shrieked Ilsa.
"Jesus!" Yelled Will jumping at her sudden outburst.
"Nope. Sorry to disappoint you but it's just Ilsa" Nolan replied.
"Yes Ilsa, that is a logical suggestion, ghosts are probably white. Wait. Ilsa?!" I cried. My voice echoed of the walls. "Where is the Ilsa?" Asked Flick coming into the room. Ilsa walked into the room. Deathly pale and her eyes wide with shock.
"Ilsa? You look like you have seen a ghost" Nolan said chuckling. She punched him in the shoulder.
"We have to get out. This is a ghost town. Literally. Everyone in here is dead" She explained.
"Oh my god. That is like so shocking. Hey everyone, everyone in an ancient, possibly cursed tomb is dead. How crazy is that" Nico joked. I suppressed a laugh. But I had a feeling Ilsa wasn't lying.
"Hey. Ilsa, maybe it was a draft or something, and this place is really old and not a place I would like to stay in overnight, so I suggest we just focus on finding the jewel so we don't have to stay here any longer than we need to" I reason. But now everyone's faces were white.
"Lilith. Whatever you do, don't turn around" Nick said putting out his arms towards me.
"What is it?" I ask my heart starting to hammer.
"Just walk really-" He was cut off.
"Stop right there!" Said a voice that was strongly accented with a strange, foreign tone. I put my hands up and turned around. The two guards that were posted next to the door that led to the coffin room. They has strangely shaped, golden masks on that looked to resemble a dog wearing a pharaoh's headdress. The guards began to multiply, and when they were done, they arrested us. I had never been arrested before in my life, and definitely not by inanimate statues that are a billion years old. Typical of them, only the boys struggled. The other girls were too busy being terrified or bawling. I rolled my eyes and thought about the best way to go about things.
"Whatever you do, for heaven's sakes, let me do the talking" I say to them. I had an idea, and I don't want them stuffing it up. We were led to down the rest of the grand gallery, and into the king's chambers. Dear God. It was beautiful. Like, I had thought that mostly everything had been excavated, clearly the king had sent his guard people on a quest to get all his jewels back, because it looked like an ancient egyptian throne room. The king himself was dressed grandly in classic Egyptian royal robes, decorated with gold, jewels and weapons. He was rather tall, with bronze skin and enough muscle that I would particularly like to get on his bad side. I would have found this rather attractive, if I could easily ignore the wounds on his abdomen. Quite horrific, but I could tell it was mostly internal, judging by the bruising. Also he was looking at us like we were dung beetles. Which is funny I guess, because the Egyptians worship dung beetles. He glared at us one by one, which was slightly creepy, his eyes rested on me.
"Lilith Shackleton?" He asked. His voice was foriegn, just like the guards'.
"Yes... Your majesty" I said, hoping I had addressed him correctly. I didn't exactly fancy losing my head. He seemed to contemplate this for a moment. Eventually he stood up.
"What is your business here?" He asked, surprisingly less hostile.
"We come in peace?" Nolan joked. Honestly I could have killed him.
"Jesus Nolan. She said she was going to do the talking" Will snapped.
"Yeah Nolan" We all said. He sniggered.
"We come in search of an ancient stone place here by the gods when they forged the world. Well it wasn't placed here exactly. It was given as a gift to you when you were... Alive? Anyway, it was placed in your tomb when you died" I explained. His expression became more hostile.
"So you are tomb robbers?" He snapped.
"No your grace. Well, kind of" I could tell it was taking him a while to understand what I was saying fully, because his replies were slow. "Your majesty, I believe the only reason you are alive is because there is a great pestilence sweeping across the world. It is killing the living, and I think it might be awakening the dead" I explained. I wasn't sure of this but I had been thinking it for a while.
"What do you mean. I can't remember dying, only waking up here" He replied.
"Your majesty, it has been three thousand and roughly three hundred years since you died in a chariot accident" I explained.
"Well then, I have no knowledge of the jewel you speak of" He said. He sounded a bit unsure of himself now, which was part of my plan. Get him to second guess himself and he might remember the jewel. But first I have to be sure he remembers his life. I am pretty sure that he remembers that he is a King, but does he remember anything else?
"Your majesty, where is the jewel? it has to be somewhere here. Clio sent us-" Ilsa blurted out.
"Clio sent you here?" He said, his head jerking violently in her direction. She flinched at his sudden attention to her. She nodded. Eliza was staring blankly ahead like she was afraid of every painting on the wall. Ilsa's long silvery hair was falling in front of her face, and she couldn't do much about it with her hands held behind her back.
"She is certain the jewel is here" She mumbled.
"Release them" Tut commanded. The guards released us. One of the more violent ones pushed Angie to the floor. Her short red hair was slightly frizzy with the heat. For some reason the king's chamber was hotter than the rest of the Pyramid. "As it so happens, I was warned that a Lilith Shackleton might pay a visit" He said, sitting back on his throne. Angie stood up but then changed her mind and sat down, hugging her knees to her chest. I stood and faced the king with as much dignity as I could muster. Ilsa came up behind me.
"I hope you know rising above your station was capital offense" She hissed.
"And what's my station?" I asked.
"Peasant, commoner, it all means the same to royalty" She replied. I let my shoulders relax. "Thats better" She said.
"Ummm... How do you know all this?" I asked. She winked at me and flanked me.
"You'd be surprised" She smirked.
"If Clio said that it is here it must be" Tut mumbled, more to himself than to us.
"Your grace, perhaps if you would allow us to looked for it-" Nolan suggested. He was cut of by Tut's viper-like glare and Ilsa's violent shove.
"That is not an option" He growled.
"Why no-" Another glare and another shove from Ilsa. "Geez girl you are strong" He remarked. Ilsa could help but look pleased with herself.
"Typical Swedish gene I think. Comes from the Barbarian streak" She said flicking her nails.
"You'd give the Romans a run for their money" Nolan replied. She glared.
"Careful Nolan. Egypt had a fluctuant relationship with Rome" She said. Oh my god. How does she know all this? I knew she had style and substance. And despite us being very good friends, I am certain I know nothing about her.
"Okay Miss historian" He answered.
"Your majesty, we have nothing to offer you as price for the jewel," Ilsa pointed out. Tut stared down at her.
"I do not ask you for a price" He replied. His dark eyes were hard to read, maybe because they seemed lost, like those of someone who was torn between certainty and uncertainty.
"Then what do you ask for?" Ilsa asked softly.
"I- I am unsure at the moment. Until I reach a decision, you remain here. If you wish you may contact Clio, but my guards will be posted at every exit. You can go wherever you wish. Just for Ra's sakes don't touch anything" The guards took us again. We were well provided for (surprisingly) I noticed that Ilsa's politeness came with reward. I couldn't help but laugh at her good treatment by the guards, it was obviously the King's orders, because it seemed strained. I sat with her as evening approached. Well I think it was around evening, because it was getting cooler.
"Why do you know all this stuff?" I asked her.
"My family traveled a lot" She stated plainly. "I have been here before, and seen Tut's sarcophagus. And body. I must say he is in much better shape now" She giggled.
"There is something your not telling" I spoke my thoughts.
"I have something that belongs to him and he knows it" The others laughed.
"What? Like his heart?" Nolan scoffed.
"If you were smart you would know that Tut's heart was never found. It was presumably crushed beyond recognition in the accident and turned to dust over time" She snapped. "And no. I have one of his rings. My father was a historian, so was my great grandfather. My great grandfather was part of the excavation here, and he light fingered one of the rings. No one knew any different, because there were so many" She explained. Well that explained everything.
"Do you have the ring here?" Gywen Asked. Ilsa nodded.
"Well I did. I am planning on returning it. As soon as he shows up" She dug around in the pockets of her sun-dress and produced a beautiful gold and turquoise ring.